Written By: Sameer Jha | Updated : March 14, 2014 10:37 AM IST
Every doctor, friend, family member has told you about how bad smoking is for you. People have cried themselves hoarse telling you about how cigarettes cause cancer, lung disease and heart disease -- but none of it seems to work. Wondering why? Well, blame your brain for your failed resolution. According to a new study, weakened brain connections that are tied to self-control over cigarette cravings. A new brain imaging study from scientists at University of Pennsylvania and the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) shows how smokers suffering from nicotine withdrawal may have more trouble shifting from a key brain network. (Read: 5 Ds to start you on the path to quit smoking)
Moving from default mode, when people are in a so-called 'introspective' state, into a control network that could help exert more conscious, self-control over cravings and to focus on quitting for good has now been understood. 'The findings help validate a neurobiological basis behind why so many people trying to quit end up relapsing and may lead to new ways to identify smokers at high risk for relapse who need more intensive smoking cessation therapy,' explained Caryn Lerman, deputy director of Penn's Abramson Cancer Centre. (Read: Why it is easier to quit smoking now than ever before)
The researchers found that smokers who abstained from cigarettes showed weakened inter-connectivity between certain large-scale networks in their brains - the default mode network, the executive control network, and the salience network. This weakened connectivity reduces smokers' ability to shift into or maintain greater influence from the executive control network which may ultimately help maintain their quitting attempt.
'What we believe this means is that smokers who just quit have a more difficult time shifting gears from inward thoughts about how they feel to an outward focus on the tasks at hand,' Lerman added. It is very important for people who are trying to quit to be able to maintain activity within the control network - to be able to shift from thinking about yourself and your inner state to focus on your more immediate goals and plan, suggested Elliot Stein from NIDA. (Read: Reasons to quit smoking more persuasive than the process to quit)
For the study, researchers conducted brain scans on 37 healthy smokers (those who smoke more than 10 cigarettes a day) aged 19 to 61 using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) in two different sessions. Imaging showed a significantly weaker connectivity between the salience network and default mode network during abstinence. The weakened connectivity during abstinence was linked with increases in smoking urges, negative mood and withdrawal symptoms - suggesting that this weaker inter-network connectivity may make it more difficult for people to quit.
The next step is to identify in advance those smokers who would have more difficultly quitting and target more intensive treatments, based on brain activity and network connectivity, said the study, published in the journal JAMA Psychiatry.
Some myths about quitting smoking
1. Quitting smoking will make me gain weight
A new study has revealed that quitting smoking may not result in a person putting on weight. The study, conducted by University of Otago, followed the progress of about 1000 people born in Dunedin in 1972-1973 and measured their smoking habits and weight regularly from the age of 15 to 38, Stuff.co.nz reported. According to the findings, both male and female quitters were likely to gain about 5 kilograms more than those who carried on smoking, but their weight returned to the same level as those who had never smoked.
The study also found that being a smoker did not prevent long-term weight gain, and all the groups in the study put on weight as they aged, regardless of their smoking status. Head researcher Lindsay Robertson said that a previous study had suggested people might gain large amounts of weight after quitting, but these studies were unreliable. The study was published in the Nicotine and Tobacco Research journal.
2. No one else is getting harmed by my smoking
You might think that all the toxic smoke of the cigarettes is going into your lungs only, but you are wrong. According to some estimates, a waiter working in a smoky bar inhales the same amount of toxic smoke as a smoker who smokes 10 cigarettes a day. Read more about the 5 Ds that can start you on your path to smoking.
3. I can quit whenever I want!
In terms of addictive potential, nicotine is as addictive as some hard drugs. Which means that once you're hooked, it's extremely difficult to quit. It becomes such an integral part of your life that only when you decide to quit cold turkey that you realise how dependent you've become to cigarettes. (Read more: Busted 6 myths people have about quitting smoking)
With inputs from IANS
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